Amerikaens Free State
| Amerikaense Free State | |
|---|---|
| |
 | |
 Location of Amerikaense Free State | |
| Established | 1903 |
| Capital | Tuynswÿck |
| Largest City | Tuynswÿck |
| Population | 9 Million |
| Area | 362 000 sq. km. |
| Languages |
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| Currency | Amerikaner Guilder (AGD) |
The Amerikaens Free State (Amerikaans: Amerikaens Vrÿstaet; Dutch: Amerikaanse Vrijstaat; Spanish: Estado Libre de América) is a sovereign nation in the western portion of North America. It is bordered on the north by Tussenland, west by the Pacific Ocean, and south by Mexico. It is the result of Dutch settlers migrating west from Tussenland and New Netherland. Before becoming an independent state, New Spain ruled over the area from 1830-1881 and became part of Mexico from 1881 until 1903. The majority of the population trace their roots back to the Dutch settlers in the 19th century.
Demographics
As of present day, the Amerikaens Free State has a population of 9 million. Three-fourths of the population reside in the Pacific province of Westerzee and the inland province of Centraelia. It is the most ethnically homogeneous nation in North America, with 89% of the population of Dutch descent (2020). The majority of the AFS population is Christian. Two-thirds adhere to the Protestant denomination, while a third adhere to the Catholic Church.
Language
The official language of the AFS is Amerikaans, a Dutch-language variant originating from New Netherland to the east. Spanish is also a co-official language in the AFS due to 63 years of Hispanic rule (1840-1903) and is more common among the older population. 23% of the population claim to speak Spanish as a first language.
The variant of Amerikaans spoken in the AFS, called Voor Amerikaans, heavily borrows vocabulary from the Spanish language. Code-switching is common, especially among the younger generation. In writing, the spelling of most words adopted from Spanish is retained, with exceptions for older terms such as Kommestas (Hello; from Spanish 'cómo estás').
However, Standard Amerikaans is still the country's primary language in government, academia, and legal matters.
Names of the AFS
The country's official name is rendered in three different languages. In the country's official language, Amerikaens, it is known as the Amerikaens Vrÿstaet. In Dutch, it is known as the Amerikaanse Vrijstaat. The English name Amerikaanse Free State is an amalgamation of the Dutch Amerikaanse and English Free State, and is the common name of the country when used in English language contexts.
Economy
The Amerikaanse Free State (AFS) is a sovereign nation on the west coast of the North American continent. The AFS is primarily considered a newly industrialized country, which has an economy currently in transition from one based on agriculture to one based more on services and manufacturing. Despite this, the AFS is today still considered to be an agricultural nation.
Flag
The flag features a simplified cross of Burgundy representing their historical status as Spanish subjects, with five stars for the five original Boer republics before Spanish rule, on an orange field (representing their Dutch heritage).
History
Pre-Spanish rule and the Establishment of the Voortrekker Republics (1799-1830)
Although Spain had already claimed this region for New Spain by the late 1700s, it was settled in the early 1800s by independent Dutch colonists originating from New Netherland and the Dutch Tussenland colony. Much to the displeasure of New Spain, settlers from Dutch Tussenland (called "Boers" or "Voortrekkers") trekked out west, crossing the Rocky Mountains and establishing sparsely populated settlements along their trail, and eventually into New Spain claimed territory. This riled up the New Spain authorities. Spain sought to fortify their presence in the area. This led to the foundation of the fortified settlement of Santa Maria.
Throughout 1800-1830, the various Boer settlements that dotted the west coast region had started to form their independent governments and began managing their own internal affairs. By 1835, five Voortrekker republics had formed, namely: Voorlandt (founded 1803, the first Boer republic), Kimoeenim Republic (founded 1812, named after the river where it sat on), Westerzee Republic (founded 1821). Goudlandt (broke off from the Westerzee Republic in 1845 after gold had been discovered), and New Orange (1847, the least populated of the five settlements).
New Spain authorities had multiple attempts in the 1820s to discourage the Dutch freebooters from settling there, including organized raids carried out by the natives. However, these were unsuccessful as the Voortrekkers managed to repel them each time.
From 1830 to 1840, New Spain decided to take more militaristic actions and began exercising their claims to the area militarily. New Spain invaded the Boer Republics one-by-one. The period was known as the Boer annexation period. The Boer Republics had no unified government or standing army, and they were easily conquered by the New Spain army. The fledgling Kingdom of the Netherlands did not want to get in a military conflict with Spain and took no action.
The Treaty of Santa Maria was signed in 1840. The 5 Republics became autonomous provinces in New Spain (and later Mexico). Over the next decades, the Dutch boers experienced rapid Catholicization and Hispanicization, and creating a new dialect of the Amerikaens language known as "Boer Amerikaens", which heavily borrows vocabulary from the Spanish language. Code-switching is common, especially within the younger generation in the present-day. In writing, the spelling of most words adopted from Spanish is retained, with exceptions for older words such as Kommestas (How are you; from Spanish 'cómo estás').
The Gold Rush of 1846, and the Goudlandt Rebellion
Gold was discovered in the southern region of the Westerzee Republic in 1845. This attracted many settlers in the area and made the small settlement of Meeuwÿck grow to a large town (the town was renamed to Goudhaven, translating to "Gold Port" in the Amerikaans dialect, known in Spanish as Puerto de Oro).
However, this rush had also attracted the Royal Dutch Tussenland Company's attention, which wished to exploit the gold-rich area. After the company's diplomatic attempts to partake in the gold rush were denied by the conservative Westerzee Republic, the company resorted to other dirty means.
They incited and supported a capitalist rebellion in Goudlandt, resulting in the secession of the Republic of Goudlandt from the Westerzee Republic (although still under the suzerainty of New Spain) in 1846. This new republic had allowed merchants working for the Dutch Tussenland company to set up shop in Goudlandt, bringing in a profit. This move, however, had upset the Spanish.
Gold-smuggling, and 2nd Dutch-Spanish War (1850-1855)
It became somewhat of an open secret that the Dutch had been siphoning the gold and profit from Goudlandt and New Spain. The trail that the Dutch merchants and miners working for the Dutch Tussenland company had used became known as the Smockelaer's Trail (meaning Smuggler's Trail in the Amerikaans dialect). This trail had also resulted in the founding of several settlements along its path. The gold smuggling business of the Dutch Tussenland company would eventually be one of the primary reasons for the Second Dutch-Spanish War. During the war, New Spain occupied key forts in the Dutch unincorporated territories of Acansa (Dutch: Opdamslandt) and Misuri (Dutch: Mizoerie). In the resulting treaty, these regions were officially ceded to New Spain as three new provinces: Misuri del Norte, Misuri del Sur, and Acansa.
Period Under New Spain (1830-1875) and the Mexican Empire (1875-1903)
The Boers enjoyed partial self-rule during its time under New Spain. It was throughout these periods that the Dutch Boer Culture became heavily influenced by Hispanic elements. Under New Spain, Protestantism was not outlawed. However, to promote Catholicism, Spain built schools in the Amerikaner towns ran by Catholic missionaries to help spread the religion. In 1875, the Boer Regions fell under the fledgling Mexican Empire. It was during this time that the Boers experienced religious persecution (specifically during the periods between 1880 and 1890, until these restrictions were relaxed due to unrest). Eventually, private worship was allowed but the Catholic Church had been placed in special status under Mexican rule. More efforts were made by the Mexican empire to consolidate her power, such as removing certain guarantees and freedoms from the Voors.
The Dutch-Mexican War (1901-1903), and the Creation of the Amerikaanse Free State
Since the 1850s, the Kingdom of the Netherlands was still struggling to rise out of the ashes of the 2nd Dutch-Spanish War (1850-1855) and the Canton War (or the Third Anglo-Dutch War; 1850-1855) fought primarily in North America and in Asia. The wars caused a massive loss of Dutch territory and prestige. The Kingdom of the Netherlands was forced to cede the territories of Acansa and Mizoerie to the Spanish, give the Afro-Amerikaner revolutionaries in South Tussenland their independence, and pay monetary concessions to Britain and Spain. As a result, Tussenland became landlocked and economic ruin devastated the colony. Rampant political unrest led to the Tussenland Revolts of 1859-1861, which transformed Tussenland into a federation of four autonomous states. By the 1870s, the Dutch economy started to recover. In the next thirty years, the Kingdom of the Netherlands was gradually able to rebuild itself, modernize its military and navy, and restore its economy. When the Mexican Empire declared independence in 1881, the Netherlands sought to exploit the fragile nature of the new state and eventually reclaim territory and prestige lost half a decade ago.
When the Mexico started centralizing their empire and reducing the autonomy of the Amerikaners in the Boer provinces, the Kingdom of the Netherlands used this as one of the pretexts for war: to liberate their kin on the west. The war resulted in a Dutch victory. After the war, the Kingdom of the Netherlands wanted to annex the Boer regions to the Federation of Tussenland (then a Dutch colony). The southern three provinces (New Orange, Goudlandt, and Voorland) outright rejected this proposal, and chose to stay within the Mexican empire, as the inhabitants of the region identified closer to Mexico than the Netherlands (highly Catholicized Amerikaner population).
The Northern Boers identified more with the Dutch than the Mexicans and were invited to join the Federation of Tussenland as two new provinces. They rejected the offer, citing cultural differences as a result of 75 years of Hispanic influence. There was also opposition within Tussenland against their entry. The provinces of Irokesenland and Westerzee feared that two new Amerikaner-dominated provinces would upset the political balance and threaten Tussenland’s cosmopolitan nature. As a compromise, borders were redrawn and the independent Amerikaens Free State was created.
